The daughter of novelist Don (that's him, at 30, on the cover), Anais Mitchell's hyper-literate follow-up to 2010's high-concept "Hadestown" delivers an empathetic, if cutting, depiction of American masculinity on this year's excellent "Young Man in America."

The title track introduces the narrator, the Young Man in America, who pops up repeatedly over the course of the album, with the line "My mother gave a mighty shout / opened her legs and let me out / hungry as a prairie dog / young man in America" and continues with a skill and weight that are belied by her pixieish delivery.

The ambitious, expansive album is a good bet for inclusion on many Best of 2012 lists. Have a listen here:

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